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COPYRIGHT DEPOSE 



THE 

SILVER TRUMPETS 



BY 

ROBERT J. BURDETTE, D.D., 

x\ 
Pastor Emeritus. Temple Baptist Church, 
Los Angeles, California 



PHILADELPHIA 

The Sunday School Times Company 

1031 Walnut Street 



ft) is- ^ 



Copyright, 1912, by 
The Sunday School Times Company. 






£C!.A31.2958 






To My Dear 

CHILDREN OF THE TEMPLE 

Beloved and Longed For 

MY JOY AND MY CROWN 

To the Congregation of Temple Baptist Church 

of 

LOS ANGELES 

The Call of the Silver Trumpets 

to 

WORSHIP AND SERVICE 

Is Most Affectionately 

DEDICATED 



FOREWORD 



Once upon a time, when I was Pastor of the Temple 
Baptist Church in a city in California, the name of 
which is "La Puebla de Nuestra Senora, Reina de 
Los Angeles," which by interpretation is " The Town 
of Our Lady, Queen of the Angels," and which by 
common usage is written Los Angeles and called by 
many mispronunciations, I said to the Pastoress, " What 
shall I give you for a Christmas present? It shall be 
given thee, even to the half of the kingdom." And 
Achsah, knowing well that my entire kingdom con- 
sisted of a pen, a bottle of ink, some few reams of arable 
paper, and certain non-taxable properties which are 
denominated in the bond as brains, promptly asked 
for the half of my realm and reams that grew the rhymes. 
* For that thou hast set me in the land of the South," 
she said, quoting from her story in the Book of Joshua, 
and meaning that I had written for her many reams 
of prose and much unmeasured prosiness, " give me 
also springs of water." And I knew that she wanted 
the fields of prose irrigated by rippling rivulets of rhyme. 
For she said, in plain English, " I want you to write 
for me this year, for the first page of The Temple Herald 
(our church calendar), every Sunday morning a little 
poem." And, like Caleb of old, I " gave her the upper 
and the nether springs." Every Sunday for a year 
I wrote a prelude to the morning sermon, based upon its 

5 



text, and printed it on the first page of The Temple 
Herald. And these are the poems. 

And I have called the little Collect of the Year 
1 The Silver Trumpets " because they appeared first 
in our Sabbath service; because they were read, and 
therefore heard, as the assembly was gathering; because 
they gave the signal for the morning worship and for 
the journey of the congregation during that week. Where- 
fore, I found the title for the poems already written for 
me in the Book of Numbers 10 : 2, 3: 

" And Jehovah spake unto Moses, saying, Make 
thee two trumpets of silver; of beaten work shalt thou 
make them: and thou shalt use them for the calling 
of the congregation, and for the journeying of the 
camps. And when they shall blow them, all the 
congregation shall gather themselves unto thee at the 
door of the tent of the meeting." 

The echoes of the Silver Trumpets are very dear to 
the Pastor who sounded the calls in the years from 1 903 
to 1 909, for they are the voices of the worshippers who 
sang the songs of Zion in the Tent of the Meeting, and 
chanted the marching music of the Church along the 
way of the Pilgrimage. And he hopes they may once 
more sound pleasantly to the past and the present 
mighty Congregations of the Temple, which on the 
recurring Sabbath days still throng the House beyond 
its doors, even while their uncounted numbers are scat- 
tered in long skirmish lines and serried columns from 
the Sunrise to the Sunset. 

ROBERT J. BURDETTE. 

" Sunnycrest," Eastertide, 1912. 

6 



TABLE OF CONTENTS 



Page 

"New Every Morning" 9 

The Sower 10 

"God's Fellow- Workers" 11 

Wasting and Saving Time « 12 

Enlisted for Life 13 

The Temple Jewels 14 

The Roll Call 15 

Easter Dawn 16 

"Behold, I Stand at the Door and Knock" 17 

"Out of the Depths" 18 

The Law 19 

Christmas Morning. The Path to the Throne 20 

"A Mother-Boy" 21 

My Guide 22 

"Am I My Brother's Keeper?" . 23 

The Potter's Clay 24 

Bound and Free 25 

"And Peter!" . . . 26 

The Sins that Sting 27 

Bricks Without Straw 28, 29 

"With Your Shield or On It" 30 

The Gray Days 31 

"Thy Kingdom Come" 32 

7 



Page 

The Court of the King 33 

"Whither Thou Goest I Will Go" 34 

Mother's Version 35 

Bartimaeus 36, 37 

The Fourth Comrade . . 38 

Manger and Throne 39 

"Other Sheep Have 1" 40 

" Keep Sweet and Keep Movin* ,1 41 

The Tale of the Ages 42 

" More Than They All " 43 

"All Right Here!" 44, 45 

" Peace I Leave with You " 46 

M My Lord and My God " 47 

" But—" 48, 49 

Love Triumphant 50 

Christ's Pilgrim-Soldier 51 

Taking the Chances 52 

"Jesus Only" 53 

The Rich Ruler 54, 55 

Faint Heart 56 

The Teacher 57 

Love that Saves 58 

Through Strife to Peace 59 

"The Light of the World" 60, 61 

Dreams and Visions . 62, 63 

The Shepherd 64, 65 

Courage and Love 66 

"Abide With Us " 67 

"At Evening Time It Shall Be light " 68 

8 



THE 

SILVER TRUMPETS 



"NEW EVERY MORNING" 

Grant us new visions of thy glory, Lord, 

Not Sinai's splendor, for that glimpse is past; 

Nor Pentecost, with all thy grace out-poured, 
For that is ours, while time and love shall last. 

Nor sad Gethsemane — its grieving, sweet and low; 

Nor Calvary's blood stained cross — these things we know. 

But greater visions of Thy glory yet; 

Suns that shall rise — not suns forever set; 

Beyond the horizon's rim, unrisen stars; 

New days that sleep beyond the morning's bars; 

New heights to scale by paths man never trod — 

Grant us new visions of Thy Glory, God! 



9 



THE SOWER 

In the earliest light of the kindling dawn — so short is 

the longest day, 
Over the ploughman's furrowed trail, I bend my hopeful 

way; 
From my praying heart to my watching eyes, the anxious 

tears will rise, 
As I wonder to what my sowing will come, when the 

day of the seed-time dies? 

For the circling birds will snatch the grain that falls 

on the wayside bare; 
And noxious germs of strangling thorns lie hid in the 

furrows fair; 
There are stony places that give me fear, where never 

the wheat may hold — 
Dear Lord of the Harvest, what of my field, when the 

sowing should be gold? 

But I scatter the seed, and I try to veil my tears under 
hopeful smiles, 

By all rivers I sow, at my Lord's command; then I'll 
wait for the afterwhiles, 

When His reapers shall come with shout and song, in 
the golden harvest sun. 

And I'll sing with the best, when He calls to me, " Faith- 
ful and good, Well 00116!" 



10 



"GOD'S FELLOW-WORKERS" 

" For we are God's fellow- workers ; ye are God's husbandry, 
God's building." — 1 Corinthians 3: 9. 

Many there be in the harvest days — 

Laughter, and shouting, and song, 
Carols of blessing — chorus of praise 

To the reaping time belong. 

But alone — " A Sower went forth to sow"; 

Where the plough had broken the sod; 
And a holier joy than the Reaper's I know 

As I walk down the furrows with God. 



II 



WASTING AND SAVING TIME 

Time laves around us like waves of the sea — 

Winds of the desert for leisure and motion; 
Eternity was, and again it will be — 

Time flows between like the tides of the ocean; 
Childhood for playing, and manhood for gain, 

Winters for pleasure and summers for roving; 
Years for ambitions we purchase with pain, 

Minutes for friendship and Seconds for loving. 

Let us spend richly the red gold of Time; 

Purchasing friendships that death cannot sever; 
Buying the Truth with its treasures sublime, 

Seeking the love that will love us forever. 
Laughter of childhood; and friendship of men; 

These are worth while for life's richest adorning; 
Let us give most to our dearest — and then 

Joy will abide at Eternity's morning. 



12 



ENLISTED FOR LIFE 

For Christ and Truth forever; for God and Right I stand; 
Love will preserve me heart-pure; Honor shall strengthen 

my hand; 
Faith will inspire my courage; Duty my law shall be: 
And 1*11 live, and do, and die for the Christ who died 

and lives for me. 



*3 



THE TEMPLE JEWELS 

" Suffer the little children to come unto me.** 

Ripples of laughter, sweeter than songs of the morning; 
Thoughts that are purer than gold in the furnace 
refined; 
Voices more precious than gems of a scepter's adorning; 

Prayers that are ornaments rare of the loving mind. 
Grace of the Spirit, the coronet for their crowning; 
Lilies of holiness, fairer than blossoms of spring; 
Smiles of soul-sunshine, that banish the shadows of 
frowning — 
These be our Jewels, dear Lord, to thy treasures we 
bring. 



14 



THE ROLL CALL 

I may reel to my death in some fierce fight 
And trampling squadrons gallop over me ; 

And never sun-bright day or cloudy night 
Shall find the soldier that I used to be. 

I may fall fainting as my name is said 

In the thinned ranks that answer sunset call ; 

Nor hear the sergeant answer for me, "Dead!" 
Nor feel the comrade catch me as I fall. 

I may die, wounded, where the swamp vines creep ; 

Or in some prison foul be left to die ; 
Or yawning waves may drag me down the deep — 

I will die fighting — always loyal — I. 

For the dear colors on my glazing eyes 

Will kiss their emblems as I yield to death ; 

My fainting heart will throb the name I prize, 
And "Victory!" I will shout with dying breath. 

Then, when my King shall call the roll of Grace, 
1*11 stand attention at his accents clear ; 

And when my name is called, in duty's place, 
Glad and triumphant, shout my answering "Here!" 



15 



EASTER DAWN 

" Why seek ye the living among the dead ?" — Luke 24 : 5. 

For Love is stronger than Death; his lilies live 

White on the blackest pall that Death can spread; 
His songs to nights of fear Faith's radiance give, 

His garlands grace with life the sleeping dead. 
In sunshine sweet his perfumed roses bloom, 

Fairest where Death's destroying feet have trod, 
Wreathing the crumbling marbles of the tomb, 

Till Earth's grave-altar breathes incense to God. 
Long, iong ere Sin to Death gave lifeless birth, 

Love sang joy-songs of life in Heaven above; 
He runs before all life that blesses earth, 

And will, till Death shall sing the life of Love. 



16 



" BEHOLD, I STAND AT THE DOOR 
AND KNOCK" 

I sit in the inner darkness of my heart's sin-darkened 

room; 
My soul and my eyes are aching, straining to pierce 

the gloom. 

My only companions are Shadows — the darker Shapes 

of the Night; 
And Day and Night are as one to me — as one, the 

Darkness and Light. 

I could have the Peace of the Starshine, crowning the 

night with Love; 
I might see the Dawn unfold like a Rose in the kindling 

skies above. 

I could have the Glory of Noontide like flood of 

molten gold 
When the flaming Gates of Heaven above the shouting 

World unfold. 

And the Twilight would come to bless me — folding 

me on her breast — 
Tender and gray as the Breast of a Dove — hushing my 

Soul to Rest. 

For the M Light of the World " stands waiting these 

Blessings to impart; 
I hear Him patiently knocking at the Door of my sunless 

heart. 

He is Mine, I know, if I bid Him come in — My Lord 

forevermore — 
But He'll never come into my Darkened Room, till 

I open for Him the door. 

2 17 



"OUT OF THE DEPTHS" 

" Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O Loid." 

Out of the depths of Pain — 
When weary nights were measured unto me, 

And the long day's refrain 
Was timed by moans that told my misery; 

Out of the depths of Fear, 
When whispers smote, and shadows terrified; 

Out of the depths so drear 
Of Folly, Sin, and Ignorance I cried 

To Thee, O God above. 
But Thou didst pray for me, O Christ who died, 

Out of the depths of Love. 



18 



THE LAW 

Holiness, Majesty, Love and Strength — 

Yesterday, Now, and Forever — Amen! 
Clasping the world in its breadth and length, 

Throned on the changing ages of Now and Then. 
God changes not! His Law holds sway 

Over the soul, and the mind, and the hand; 
'Till Heaven and earth shall pass away," 

God's M shall " and " shall not " forever will stand. 



19 



CHRISTMAS MORNING 

The Path to the Throne 

My Baby, would you reign? Then, must you Love; 

Love is the fadeless crown's unfading Gem; 
And if you Love, then must you Suffer, Little Dove — 

The Crown of Thorns precedes the Diadem. 



20 



"A MOTHER-BOY" 

M Mother-Boys " — first in the world's great needs 
Gentle, and noisy, and rough, and clean; 

Pure thoughts prompting the noble deeds, 
Love for the Good and hate for the Mean. 

Speaking the Truth, and fearing naught; 
Serving the Right for Honor's joys; 

Manhood and conscience that can't be bought- 

** God's Men " grow out of " Mother-Boys." 



21 



MY GUIDE 

There is no path in this desert waste, 

For the winds have swept the shifting sands; 
The trail is blind where the storms have raced, 

And a stranger, I, in these fearsome lands. 
But I journey on with a lightsome tread; 

I do not falter nor turn aside; 
For I see His figure, just ahead — 

He knows the way that I take — My Guide. 

There is no path in this trackless sea; 

No map is lined on the restless waves; 
The ocean snares are strange to me 

Where the unseen wind in its fury raves; 
But it matters naught; my sails are set, 

And my swift prow tosses the seas aside; 
For the changeless stars are steadfast yet, 

And I sail by His star-blazed trail — My Guide. 

There is no way in this starless night; 

There is naught but cloud in the inky skies; 
The black night smothers me, left and right, 

I stare with a blind man's straining eyes; 
But my steps are firm, for I cannot stray; 

The path to my feet seems light and wide; 
For I hear His voice — " I am the Way!" 

And I sing as I follow Him on — My Guide. 



22 



" AM I MY BROTHER'S KEEPER?" 

How can I sleep in peace, while the wreck pounds off 

the shore, 
And " God's Men " wake like giants to fight Death 

face to face? 
How can I eat with delight, while slinking past my door, 
Gaunt Hunger hisses a curse as his M Amen M to my 

grace? 
Could I sit here at my ease, 'midst the sorrows I daily 

meet, 
I could be happy in Heaven, while Hell howled round 

my feet. 



23 



THE POTTER'S CLAY 

Mould me of faults, dear Lord, but shape me fair- 
Pride, Hate, and Fear — I will not blush nor care; 
Too proud to stoop my soul to things unclean, 
Hating all actions sordid, base, and mean; 
Afraid to trust myself to passion's sway; 
Fearing to walk without thee for one day. 
Make me thine armor-bearer in the strife, 
Loving thy standard better than my life; 
Thy bond slave — anything to keep me near 
Thy truth — to me than all the world more dear. 
Make me each day a little more like Thee — 
God-man of men — thou Man of Galilee! 



24 



BOUND AND FREE 

Pilate the Roman hath washed his hands; Barabbas 
the Robber is free; 

My feet are light as the wings of a bird; no one is chained 
save Thee. 

Thy hands, O Christ the Thorn-crowned, with the bight 
of my guilt are bound — 

What if my sins could hold them fast — where were de- 
liverance found? 

Pilate beside Thee; I at Thy feet; pointing our hands at 

Thee — 
Barabbas shouting M Away with Him!" All blind, 

that we could not see 
The whole world turning to where He stood between 

the cross and the spears, 
With the dear hands bound, that held the grace and 

peace of the coming years. 



25 



"AND PETER!" 

Turn, turn away thy face, dear Lord, I cannot bear 

That Thou shouldst look on me; 
Death cannot veil that look of grief and care 

I wrung from Thee! 
Blindness can ne'er shut out that glance of pain; 
And I can never see Thy face again 
Nor speak Thy name, but burning tears will fall; 
Yet sweet as manna to my soul Thy call — 
' Tell my disciples, Angel, tell them all " — 
" And me!" 

O Son of God! My throbbing heart will break 

For love of Thee! 
My face from out the dust how can I take 

To look on Thee? 
Still, still to all the world Thy message goes — 
To all the sons of men, through tears and woes; 
Love, love unmeasured, throbs in every tone; 
* Tell my disciples, Angel, every one " — 
Then sweetly comes its word to me alone — 
" And me!" 



26 



THE SINS THAT STING 

My voice unkind — like fretful winds that blow — 

May God's love send it music, sweet and low — 

Hath wreathed a grieving mouth with quivering pain, 

And dimmed the tender eyes with tears like rain. 

If I had known, I had not trampled down 

The violets Love had twined into a crown; 

If I had only known, how all day long 

My thoughtless words had been thy sobbing song; 

If I had known with what a bitter smart 

My careless taunt had rankled in thy heart; 

Had I but known how keenly it had stung — 

The idle jest, forgotten on my tongue — 

I say, " I did not think; nor mean to; I forgot." 

Love always thinks, and knows, and faileth not. 

Dear Christ — Forgive our sins against our own; 

The thoughtlessness that drives Thee from Love's throne; 

Forgive our sins — with pleading soul we pray— 

The cruel things "we did not mean to say." 



27 



BRICKS WITHOUT STRAW 

More than four thousand years ago — 

Shadows of time, how the days go by! 

There was a man I used to know — 

May seem strange, but you'll see it's so 
After I tell you the reason why; 

Worked in a brickyard, same as you 

And all the rest of us have to do; 

Mixed in the trouble and worry and strife, 

The mirth, and the other things of life. 

Stirred in the hopes, and the pains, and fears, 

Kneaded the mud with his sweat and his tears, 

Humanest mass that ever you saw — 
" Poor brick," said the man, " but I have no straw." 

Up to his knees in the miry pit — 
A pigmy's way, but a giant's grit; 
His back was a chain of throbbing aches, 
Lifting the mold with its earthen cakes; 
Elbows rusty as hinges of steel; 
Knees so lame he could hardly kneel; 
Mud so stiff it would clog a plow, 
And couldn't be stirred with a v/heel nohow; 
Nights as short as the days were long, 
Nothing seemed right, and everything wrong; 
Best I can do," said the man, M but, pshaw! 
Can't make good brick when you have no straw!" 

28 



* 



Taskmasters pitiless lashed the man — 
M Can't!" sobbed Weakness, but Courage cried " Can!" 
" Don't!" said Despair, but Duty cried " Do!" 
" All right," said the man, " I'll worry her through! 
Can't do much, and I reckon you'll see 
Brick won't be just what they ought to be; 
Ain't nigh so good as I know I could make 
If I just had straw; but you'll have to take 
The best I can do for the work's own sake." 

He finished his tale of brick, and then 

Went home to rest. And the sons of men 

Looked on his perfect work, and saw 

He'd have spoiled the brick, had he put in straw. 



29 



"WITH YOUR SHIELD OR ON IT" 

Foot-prints of blood in Valley Forge snows; 

Stains where the Cumberland sank in the sea; 
Crimson the life tide down Bunker Hill flows; 

Red drips the rain from a Gettysburg tree. 

Are you a Man — and shrink from a fight? 

Are you a Soldier — and faint at a wound? 
Victory dies of nothing but fright; 

Valor o'erthrown is Victory crowned. 

Fight — for the glory of striking a blow; 

Bleed — for the honor of wearing a wound; 
Die — for the praise you will wrest from the foe; 

Sleep — that your story may spring from the ground. 

You shall come triumphing home — on your shield; 

Broken, your sword shall repose on your breast; 
While your comrades unscathed, marching home from 
the field 

With their glad war songs will sing you to rest. 



30 



THE GRAY DAYS 
Evermore all the days are long, and the cheerless skies 

are gray, 
Restlessly wander the baffling winds that scatter the 

blinding spray, 
And the drifting currents come and go like serpents 

across my way. 

Wearily fades the evening dim, drearily wears the night, 
The ghostly mists, and the hurrying clouds, and the 

breakers' crests of white 
Have blotted the stars from the desolate skies; have 

curtained them from my sight. 

Speeding alone, my wave-tossed bark encounters no 
passing sail, 

Welcoming friend nor challenging foe answers my eager 
hail- 

Only the sobbing, restless waves and the winds un- 
ceasing wail. 

Hopefully still my sails are bent, my Pilot is faultlessly true, 
He holds my course as though the seas and the mirrored 

skies were blue, 
And the port of peace, where the winds are still, were 

evermore in view. 

For over the spray and the rain and the clouds shines 

the eternal sun, 
The stars of God in the curtained dome still gleam when 

the day is done, 
And the mists will be kissed from the laughing skies 

when the port of rest is won. 

3i 



"THY KINGDOM COME" 

* Thy Kingdom Come!" 
Into the ways of human woe 

Where moans and heartaches come and go; 
Where the wild storms of sorrow sweep, 
Where anxious souls lone vigils keep, 
Where eyes with weeping ache and burn, 
Where longing hearts for day-break yearn, 
Shine with the brightness of Thy face, 
Gleam with the beauty of Thy grace — 
' Thy Kingdom Come!" 

* Thy Kingdom Come!" 

O'er War's red fields rough-plowed by fire, 
In lives weed-grown with foul desire; 
In souls of men ice-hard and cold, 
Chilled by the death-like greed of gold; 
Into base lives of lustfulness, 
Dry-rotted hearts of selfishness, 
Into the pleasures, vain and light, 
Into the shame-tracked ways of night, 
Shine with the splendor from above, 
The pure white light of Saving Love — 
' Thy Kingdom Come!" 



32 



THE COURT OF THE KING 

Never the gleam of a jewel; nor the sweep of a purple 

gown; 
Never a tent of the cloth of gold, nor radiant flame of a 

crown; 
Never the flash of a diadem; nor the sheen of the serried 

spears; 
Nor heralds proclaiming the greatness of the line of a 

thousand years; 
Princekin, or noble, or lordling — not one of the little 

great men 
Marshals his train to meet him — chief of the thousands 

ten; 
But the singing of little children; the chant of a simple 

psalm; 
The acclamations of women; the pathway of robe and 

palm; 
The shouting of humble toilers; and the glad earth's 

blossoming — 
This is the Royal Progress — this is the Court of the King! 



33 



"WHITHER THOU GOEST I WILL GO" 

How can I say, " If aught but Death part ever Thee 

and me!" 
When Death, dear Lord, is a guide that brings my 

closest soul to Thee? 
Close to the hands that soothed my pain; the voice 

that stilled my fears; 
The strength that lifted my grievous load; the love that 

kissed my tears; 
The smile that lightened my darkest gloom; the sunlight 

of Thy face; 
The pardon in Thy living word; the refuge of Thy 

grace,— 
Death part us, Lord? I'll sing with joy; I'll laugh 

when he speaks to me 
By the sepulcher's door: * The Master is come, and 

calleth now for thee." 



34 



MOTHER'S VERSION 

This is the Bible she left her boy, that youth, with its 

eagle sight, 
Might vision profounder depths of joy, see truth at a 

clearer height; 
When it looked through the bitter sweet alloy of tears 

by Love made bright. 

This is the Bible she used to read; its markings here and 
there 

Tell where she found its peaceful meed; where she lin- 
gered in silent prayer; 

Where her heart was heavy with sorest need; where the 
skies were dull or fair. 

See, where the blistered letters show the tears that 

dimmed the line, 
While, under the drifting mist, we know how the gems 

of truth would shine- 
Where the precious text is blurred the most, we read 

the sweetest line. 

For the Bible she read is a palimpsest — the word of God 

runs true, 
Though, written over its messages blest, the lines of 

human rue 
Are penned in tears from a soul distressed, as a rose is 

gemmed with dew. 

And the text is dearer, its truth made strong, more bless- 
ing the promises bring, 

Sweeter and clearer, more joyous the song Faith taught 
her soul to sing, 

As purer tints to the lilies belong, for the pain of their 
blossoming. 

35 



BARTIMAEUS 

" And Jesus answered and said unto him : What wilt thou that 
I should do unto thee ? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I 
rnight receive my sight.** 

I would receive my sight: my clouded eyes 
Miss the glad radiance of the morning sun, 

The changing tints that glorify the skies 

With roseate splendors when the day is done; 

The shadows soft and gray, the pearly light 

Of summer twilight deep'ning into night. 

I cannot see to keep the narrow way, 
And so I blindly wander here and there, 

Groping amidst the tombs; or helpless stray 
Through pathless, tangled deserts, bleak and bare; 

Weeping I seek the way I cannot find — 

Open my eyes, dear Lord, for I am blind. 

And oft I laugh with some light, thoughtless jest, 
Nor see how anguish lines some face most dear, 

And write my mirth, a mocking palimpsest — 
On blotted scrolls of human pain and fear; 

And never see the heartache interlined — 

Pity, O Son of David! I am blind. 

I do not see the pain my light words give; 

The quivering, shrinking heart I cannot see. 
So, Light of Thought, 'midst hidden griefs I live, 

And mock the cypressed tombs with sightless glee; 
Open mine eyes, Light, blessed ways to find — 
Jesus, have mercy on me — I am blind. 

36 



My useless eyes are reservoirs of tears, 

Doomed for their blind mistakes to overflow; 
To weep for thoughtless ways of wandering years, 

Because I could not see — I did not know. 
These sightless eyes — than angriest glance less kind- 
Light of the World, have pity! I am blind. 



37 



THE FOURTH COMRADE 

Faint-Heart. 
I am so faint of heart I cannot Stand — 

What if my Lord's war standard I forsake? 
Would I might die ere I be so unmanned — 

Die, ere my shouting foes their onset make! 

Little-Faith. 

I am so weak I know I cannot Fight; 

But I will throw myself across the Trail, 
And they may slay me — but that barrier slight 

Will hold them while they kill my body frail. 

Ready-to-Halt. 

I am so lame I cannot Overcome; 

But some strong Fighter with my Faith-wrought 
shield 
1*11 cover; so his good sword, striking home, 

Shall win, while I lie bleeding on the field. 

The Battle. 

Sword-arm to Shield-arm then we stood, we Three — 
And smote our foes as Giants' pygmies smite; 

And sang, and cheered — while bringing Victory, 
" One like the Son of God " stood by our Fight! 



38 



MANGER AND THRONE 

Holy, and pure, and whiter than flame, 
The Heavenly host in a cloud of light — 

They sang to the Shepherds His loftiest name, 
Filling with glory the Christmas night; 

The Babe in the Manger all heaven adored 

By the name of the angels — Christ the Lord! 

Now, on His throne exalted high, 
King of kings, and of lords the Lord, 

Heaven and earth take up the cry, 
The universe rings with the mighty chord — 

We hail His crown and His Scepter-rod 

With the Shepherd's title — The Lamb of God! 



39 



"OTHER SHEEP HAVE I, WHICH ARE 
NOT OF THIS FOLD" 

Some there are, folded beside the Waters Still, 
Some in Green Pastures wait the Shepherd's will; 
Some in safe Folds by His dear hands are fed, 
Some through Death Shadowed Vales by Him are led. 
Some follow Him in evening's tranquil light; 
Some wander lost through desert, storm, and night. 
He knows them all by name; sweet, strong, and clear, 
They hear his voice — and Him alone they hear. 
And some day, in the Shadow of the Rock — 
The Shepherd wills it — " There shall be one Flock." 



40 



^ ^ 



44 KEEP SWEET AND KEEP MOVIN' " 

Homely phrase of our southland bright — 

Keep steady step to the flam of the drum; 
Touch to the left — eyes to the right — 

Sing with the soul tho' the lips be dumb. 
Hard to be good when the wind's in the east; 

Hard to be gay when the heart is down; 
When "they that trouble you are increased," 

When you look for a smile and see a frown. 
But 
" Keep sweet and keep movin V 



Hard to be sweet when the throng is dense, 
When elbows jostle and shoulders crowd; 
Easy to give and to take offense 

When the touch is rough and the voice is loud; 
14 Keep to the right " in the city's throng; 
44 Divide the road " on the broad highway; 
There's one way right when everything's wrong; 
44 Easy and fair goes far in a day." 

Just 
44 Keep sweet and keep movin'." 



The quick taunt answers the hasty word— 

The lifetime chance for a ** help" is missed; 
The muddiest pool is a fountain stirred, 

A kind hand clinched makes an ugly fist. 
When the nerves are tense and the mind is vexed, 

The spark lies close to the magazine; 
Whisper a hope to the soul perplexed — 

Banish the fear with a smile serene — 
Just 
44 Keep sweet and keep movin'." 

4i 



THE TALE OF THE AGES 

(A DAY IN PALESTINE) 

Strong-winged hopes and childish fears, 
Seconds of time and a thousand years; 
Shout of a man, and a baby's breath, 
Pride of life, and the throe of death. 

Rain and the sun — the Ploughman's pain, 
The Sower's faith, and the Reaper's gain; 
A victor's wreath, and a race begun, 
Shock of the storm, and the kiss of the sun. 

Poverty's woe, and the ease of wealth, 
Blight of disease, and the bloom of health; 
Malice, and envy, and pitiless hate, 
And Love that conquers and changes fate. 

All that you've seen, and heard, and read, 
What the wise have done, and the foolish said; 
What To-day has wrought and Yesterday planned- 
The Great Big World in a little Land. 



42 



urn 



"MORE THAN THEY ALL" 

"This poor widow hath cast in more than they all."— ^Mark 12:41. 

It is her way to give more — the life of a Woman is Giving; 

More of her time — that others may rest at ease; 
More grief for the dead whom she loved — more care for 
the living; 

More of her thought for the selfish and hard to please. 

More to her country she gives than ever the soldier or 

sailor; 

More risk of her life, when the sailor and soldier is born; 

More courage of soul, when the bugles of battle assail her, 

When from his nest in her heart-strings her fledgling 

is torn. 

More patience she gives to the dull; to the weary and sad, 
more of pleasure; 
More prayers for the sinful; more help for the weak 
and the lost; 
More love — giving all of its heart-hoarded perfume and 
treasure; 
More joy in the giving, forgetting the pain and the 
cost. 



43 



"ALL RIGHT HERE!" 

Waits the long train in the station lights, 

Steadily shine the stars o'erhead; 
A sword of flame, the headlight smites 

The rails of steel into silver thread; 
The platform is cleared by the " All aboard!" 

Station-men loiter a space to hear 
The brakeman echo the parting word — 
From step to step — sharp — positive — clear — 
M Right!" 
44 All Right!" 
44 All Right Here!" 

Black clouds blot out the star-shine fair, 
The train roars into the driving rain; 
Lightnings darken the headlight's glare, 
Whirlwinds grapple the bridge amain; 
Gorges foam with the torrent's wrath, 

Mountains tremble with rage and fear; 
One minute a signal bars the path — 

Then into the storm with the cry of cheer — 
44 Right!" 
44 All Right!" 
44 All Right Here!" 

Day coach and smoker — mail and express — 
That challenge rings through the starting train; 

Back in the Pullman's cosiness 
The sleepers hear it — and sleep again. 
44 



Let the storm rage! . The day will beam! 

Vigilance watches by rail and wheel; 
Duty and courage, and steel and steam, 
Blend in the brakeman's cheery peal — 
" Right!" 
" All Right!" 
"All Right Here!" 

Swings the old world through the wrong and the right, 

Storms of December and sweetness of June; 
Terror of darkness and gladness of light, 

Wrack of the tempest and calm of the noon; 
Here, where our hearth fire tenderly gleams, 

There, by the farther star, steady and clear, 
The Mighty One smiles at our terrors and dreams, 
Hailing the days of each on-coming year — 
" Right!" 
" All Right!" 
"All Right Here!" 



45 



"PEACE I LEAVE WITH YOU" 

Peace! And his own life crimsons the Roman spear; 
Peace! And the flaming City of Peace is quenched 
in blood! 
Peace! And his martyrs calendar year by year 

With the numberless deaths that darken the murderous 
flood. 

Peace! And a thousand years of war twice told roll by; 

Kingdom and empire are smitten to dust by the sword; 
Armies of Christian and Pagan clash in the battle-cry 

Trampling in mad contempt the legacy of the Lord. 

If war must be, then, let us make war 'gainst war; 

Let us fight for the Prince of Peace with the thorn- 
crowned head; 
Let us drive the men who love hate to go on before 

Till we count but the makers of strife as our dead. 

Let the Kings and the war-makers go to the front and 
die- 
Long years has it been since a king was hurt in a 

fi 2 ht ! 
While safe in our peaceful homes with our kindred, you 

and I 

Will shout, in the place of the king — " God speed the 

Right!" 

For that sure, is safe, sweet and pleasant, to pray for the 
right; 
We will make it our morning-prayer and our evensong; 
And when they who pretend to love fighting are slain 
in the fight 
We will chant — " The Judge of the Earth can do no 
wrong!" 

46 



"MY LORD AND MY GOD!" 

How do I know He is Jesus the Lord? 

I was leprous, and foul, and mean; 
I fell at His feet, and He lifted me up — 

Saying, " I will! be clean!" 

How do I know He's the Christ of God? 
I was blind; and men trampled on me; 
Have pity!" I cried; and He touched my eyes — 
" Be opened," He said; and I see! 

How do I know He's the Son of God? 

I stood by His cross, afraid; 
For Fd driven the nails; but He looked upon me- 

And, " Father, forgive!" He prayed. 

How do I know He's the Living God? 

In corruption of sin I lay dead; 
But Life Everlasting thrilled into me, when — 

4 Thy sins be forgiven!" He said. 



47 



■■ BUT—" 

II KINGS 5:1. 

Standards were lowered as he passed by; 
Trumpets saluted; the herald's cry 
Echoed his titles and name aloud; 
Bent every knee; every head was bowed. 
Escort and councilors — power and law — 
Hemmed him with reverence, honor and awe; 
Ransom of kingdoms burned and gleamed, 
Gemmed in his armor — a god he seemed; 
His deeds were themes of the minstrel's songs; 
Princes loosened his sandal thongs; 
Silken his couch, and he breathed the air 
Magic with perfumes faint and rare; 
Power was his to destroy or save — 
Tear down the King, and exalt the slave — 
" But— 
He was a leper." 

JUDGES 16:21. 

Mightiest man earth ever saw — 
Strength and his will were his only law; 
He laughed in the lion's eyes of flame, 
And played "bare hands" for the joy of the game; 
Held out his wrists for the seven-fold cord, 
Then slept in the snare of the foe abhorred; 
Smote till he wearied of death, and then 
Sported with Danger for pastime again; 
Wrestled with Force, and trifled with Fate; 
Played odds with Cunning; tormented Hate; 

4 8 



Hunted for Peril — sought foes far and near; 
Made wreck of Disaster; and terrified Fear — 

44 But— 
The Philistines took him, and put out his eyes, 
And brought him down to Gaza, 
And bound him with fetters of brass, 
And he did grind in the prison house." 

LUKE 12:20. 

Gold rained on " the things which he possessed " — 

He owned in the East, he bought in the West; 

Lengthened the boundaries of his lands, 

Dredged in the rivers of shining sands; 

Sent out his ships to the farthest seas 

For the golden fruit of Hesperides; 

Bent thought and labor to do his will, 

Schemed, and succeeded, and increased still; 

Multiplied winnings to sums untold; 

Stayed all his ventures to anchors of gold; 

Heaped up, and gathered; reached out for more, 

Till there was no room for his growing store; 

So rich in '* possessions M he did not know 

Where his " fruits and his goods he could bestow "- 

4< But— 
God said to Him, * Thou Fool! 
This night thy soul shall be required of thee ! 
And he had forgotten that he had a soul. 



49 



LOVE TRIUMPHANT 

Hate — and Thou hatest sin with hate eternal — 
Hate could not pour thy wrath upon the world, 

But Love — that drew Thee from the height supernal 
Could stay the flaming bolt that Justice hurled. 

Revenge for insult, blow, and basest treason 
Could not provoke the anger of thy rod; 

But Love could kiss the scourge, and make a reason 
For loving sinners to the arms of God. 



5° 



CHRIST'S PILGRIM-SOLDIER 

The New Year Bells ring out Christ's " Follow Me!" 

I will leave everything and follow on; 
I will leave Life for Immortality, 

This world I'll leave to go where Christ hath gone. 
I'll test my soul against the powers of Sin; 

God's Grace in me against temptation's might; 
I may run fainting — but I'll run to win; 

And I may die — but I will win my fight. 



Si 



TAKING THE CHANCES 

I've taken my chances — one, two and three — 
I wonder how many are left to me? 

I've lost on them all — three, two and one— 
And the final reckoning hasn't begun. 

Once to Sin, and once to Shame, 
Once to a smear on an honored Name. 

I've taken the chances, one to ten — 
Lost, and doubled, and lost again. 

But it's early yet, and I can't refuse; 
I've plenty of years, and I've lots to lose. 

Honor, and Truth, and a little Wealth; 

Love, Home and Peace; and Youth and Health; 

Stack them together — they make a Roll! 
And then there's Body, and Mind — and Soul ! 

I wish I could know — I wish I could see 
Just ere my Last Chance comes to me. 

For the grade is steep, and the brakes don't hold; 
The chasm is deep and the curves are bold; 

The light grows faint and the pace is fast — 
God! — And I'm over the cliff at last! 



52 



"JESUS ONLY" 

" Could ye not watch with Me one hour ?'* 

We would not watch one hour with Thee, dear Lord; 

We would not share the burden of one tear; 
We would not look upon the soul out-poured 

For Love's dear sake, in Calvary's love-crowned year. 

We slept, and left Thee with Thy grief sublime, 
Nor whispered one faint word of sympathy; 

Nor for one hand-clasp had we thought or time — 
We slept — and did not even dream of Thee. 

Now, God forbid that we, whose love was dead, 
What time the Son of God His vigil kept, 

Should tear one ray of glory from His head, 
To place it on some weakling head that slept. 

To Christ alone, who suffered, be the Praise! 

To Him who bore the cross alone, the Crown! 
To '* Jesus Only," through the endless days, 

Be glory, honor, worship, power, renown I 



S3 



THE RICH RULER 

" Sell that thou hast — give to the poor." 

I builded my Treasure-house under the ground — 
Cavern of granite with doors steel-bound; 

And my gold, and my gems, and my jewels there 
Safe-guarded by charms and magic rare. 

My Granaries, proof against hunger or fear, 
Were rich with the harvest of many a year. 

And I watched with suspicion my fellows, then, 
For I heard the whispers of starving men. 

But, once on the desert when Hunger spoke, 
My crust with a beggar boy I broke. 

Then the wilderness sang with a multitude, 
For the barren sands were fields of food. 

And men who hated my iron rod 
Coupled my name with the name of God. 

Back to my Granaries — mad with fear — 
Empty as husks of a famine year! 

But I sang for joy, like a man gone mad, 
For their bounteous emptiness made me glad. 

Then once, when a blind man cried for alms, 
I emptied my purse in his shriveled palms. 

54 



And I heard the blind, and the poor, and the lame, 
Shouting with praise my hated name. 

Then I rushed to my Treasure-house, faint with dread 
Dust, Dust, and Dust — like the house of the Dead! 

But my heart was so light that I laughed and cried; 
My soul with Love was so glorified; 

For I heard from heaven the dear Christ call — 
" It is Mine, my child; you have given it all!" 



55 



FAINT HEART 

There lies your rest — its fountains clear to clean you; 
Sunshine to kiss and waving palms to screen you; 
Only this rushing Jordan flows between you! 
** But I can't swim." 

Beyond the mountains, ready for your reaping, 
Beckon the golden harvests; for your keeping 
Low the black herds. Climb, while the world is sleeping! 
M But I can't climb." 

Night swallows up the day — ere morning overtakes you, 
One hard, swift march thro' rayless midnight makes you 
King of a realm — your heritage awakes you! 
M But I'm afraid in the dark!" 

M I'd like to have what's coming to me, surely. 
But in the desert I can sleep securely — " 
Just then a hungry lion, prematurely, 
Asked him to dinner. 



56 



THE TEACHER 

Dear Teacher, patient with our childish ways — 

Teach us the common things of common days; 

While careless hands the dog-eared pages turn — 

Teach us the easy things, so hard to learn. 

The Truth — that needs no learning to declare — 

Pure, white-souled Truth, than noon-day sun more fair; 

And Faith — that 'midst all doubts and fears and woes, 

Sings on the children's lips — " Well, — Teacher knows!" 

And Love — that hath ten million times been told; 

Love — that is older than the world is old; 

Love — that will live when all the worlds are dead, 

When these great little lessons have been said, 

Then heaven and earth in one great school will meet — 

Learning old lessons at the Teacher's feet. 



57 



LOVE THAT SAVES 

Wayward the path that I made for myself when I said, 

" My soul is free!" 
Temptation danced in a flower-strewn way — fair as 

the morning, she; 

Folly laughed and sang at my side; Pleasure smiled in 

my face; 
Sin, half hidden, coiled 'neath the rose, gleaming with 

sinuous grace. 

What was there in the beautiful world, but laughter, 

and pleasure, and song? 
Nothing so fair could ever be false; nothing so sweet be 

wrong! 

But the roses of morning time faded away; venomous 

thorns appeared; 
Figures of grace and beauty became hideous shapes 

that I feared. 

My way was lost in the wilderness trails, night fell star- 
less and black; 

I saw the terrors of Sinai's mount — lightnings, and thun- 
ders, and wrack. 

Death stood fast on the way I must go; hell yawned under 

my path; 
All that my soul might hope to know was judgment of 

God and His wrath 

Crying and calling the long night through; lo, with the 

dawn of day — 
Goodness and Mercy — angels of God — had followed me 

all the way. 

58 



THROUGH STRIFE TO PEACE 

" His Banner over me is Love — " 
Love Divine — O Saviour mine! 

His grace sustains me from above — 
Saviour mine — O Love Divine. 

My soul I keep, my faith I hold, 

Against temptations manifold, 

Stand for His Truth, O hearts of gold — 
Love Divine — O Saviour mine! 

Beneath the Banner white as snow — 

Son of God — O King Divine! 
My shield across my heart I throw, 

Prince of Peace — O Saviour mine. 
Help me, O God, thy foes to smite, 
Teach me the fight of Faith to fight, 
Nerve thou my arm for Truth and Right — 

Love Divine — O Saviour mine! 

Above the hills I see the dawn! 

Light Divine — O Light Divine! 
My night of watch and ward are gone — 

Saviour mine — O Saviour mine! 
M Come unto Me!" I hear Him say; 
My armor at Flis feet I lay — 
Hail! Peace of God's eternal day! 

Saviour mine — O Saviour mine! 



59 



"THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD" 

Midnight; sorrow and loneliness; 
Darkness and fear my soul distress; 
Dread lest never the morn again 
Shine on the darkened ways of men; 
While for the light I sigh and yearn — 
Lo, overhead the white stars burn; 
And darkness is beautiful — all the night 
Smiles in their sweet and tranquil Light. 

Dawn — and the arrows of the Day 
Pierce all the glooms with trembling grey; 
The diamond stars that the night arrayed 
On her dusky purples faint and fade; 
The east with royal splendor glows 
As the morn unfolds like a blushing rose; 
Back to its caverns flies the night — 
And the world is new — baptized in Light. 

Noon — and Day's banners, wide unfurled, 
Enfold with radiance all the world; 
The playing shadows like children run 
To hide 'neath the trees from the laughing sun; 
The mountains are opals that burn and gleam 
In the changing lights of the golden beam; 
The sea is a mirror of dimples bright 
Kissed by the dancing, joyous Light. 

60 



Down the sweet slopes of the afternoon 

Go the pilgrim hours, all too soon; 

Through its western portals, crimson grey, 

Silently passes the wearied day; 

Twilight, weaver of dreams and charms 

Gathers the world in her tender arms; 

On her brow, where the beautiful shadows are 

Gleams like a jewel the Evening Star 

For He who commanded " Let there be Light,' 

Hath spoken again — M There shall be no Night. 



61 



DREAMS AND VISIONS 

There once was a sort of a sailor man — 
The kind that loves to dream and plan; 
He had no reverence under the sun 
For a thing that's only half-way done. 
Made no difference, it appears, 
Had it been that way ten thousand years. 
So he sailed one day, out into the sea, 
Past the bound of all seas that used to be; 
Past the rim of the world; past the edge of things; 
Down the slant of the sky where Chaos springs; 
Past the hem of the Twilight's dusky robe; 
Down the slope of the globe — 'fore there was a globe! 
And what do you reckon he goes and does? 
Spoiled every map of the world there was! 
But he made a better one. 

And there once was a man who had an " idee M 
That everything was 'cause it had to be. 
And every " must," he used to say, 
Had a law behind it, plain as day; 
And he used to argue, if you could find 
The law that gave the " thing " its mind, 
By using your brains and hands and eyes, 
You could break the " must " to be bridle- wise; 
Not to drive, but to follow you; 
To do the thing you told it to; 
To turn the M must " into a " may," 
And set it to work, instead of play. 

62 



Just learn to use, this man, said he, 
A vision, instead of a memory. 
So he got to thinking one day about steam; 
And he'd think, and study, and puzzle, and dream — 
And when he got through, what think you he'd done? 
Wrecked every stage-coach under the sun! 
But he'd made a better one. 



63 



THE SHEPHERD 

When I was a shepherd by Bethlehem town — 

David's old town — beautiful town — 

An innocent Babe from Heaven came down, 

Sweet into Bethlehem town. 
The angels, in radiant circles on high, 
Told us, with anthem and jubilant cry, 
How He came to redeem us from burden and sigh — 

Cradled in Bethlehem town. 

Then I once led my sheep around Calvary hill — 

Barren and chill — Love-girdled still — 

And I heard a wild cry, ringing fearful and shrill, 

Shrill over Calvary hill. 
It cried, " It is finished!" Oh, sorrow and shame! 
I looked, and my soul was in anguish, aflame, 
For the Man on the Cross and the Babe were the same 

Heart-breaking Calvary hill! 

So I led my white flock on to Bethany here — 

Bethany fair — Bethany dear — 

And a voice like to God's in the air I could hear — 

Sweet over Bethany dear. 
I lifted my eyes to the sun-kindled cloud, 
My lips and my soul sang their praises aloud, 
To the Babe, and the Man, and the God in the cloud- 
One over Bethany dear! 



6 4 



Now my sheep to their pasture I lead to the plain — 
Hill-circled plain — fountain-kissed plain — 
But at even I gather my soft-bleating train 

To Bethany's fold once again. 
For in dreams, when I sleep, I can see Him once more 
With His sheltering arms as I saw them before, 
And His blessing so tender I hear as of yore — 

Dear in its tender refrain. 

Bethlehem — Calvary — Bethany — ye — 
Sweeter than gardens of roses to me — 
Childhood — and Manhood — and Godhead I see — 
Wreathing these Love-haloed Three. 



65 



COURAGE AND LOVE 

O Ships of War that keep the Peace 

With black-lipped guns and hearts of fire! 

When die the flames, and thunders cease, 
Sweet Pity soothes the fighting ire. 

Then drives the Life boat through the wave 
And wreathing war-clouds disappear, 

While lips that word of battle gave, 

Whisper, " They're dying, boys — don't cheer!" 



66 



"ABIDE WITH US" 

Abide with me, Lord; night comes on apace, 

Black clouds shut out the stars; the day is gone; 
Eternal morning shines in Thy dear face 

And turns my midnight into radiant dawn. 
Sorrow hath dimmed the twilight of my day; 

With bitter tears my longing eyes are blurred; 
Strengthen my steps that falter in the way 

And cheer the fainting heart, Thou Living Word I 



6 7 



"AT EVENING TIME IT SHALL BE LIGHT* 

By many a stony path have I been led, 

On rock-strewn ways; 
Through wintry blasts when summer flowers were dead; 

Through storm-swept days; 
Down Sorrow's steeps, where light was faint and dim; 

On mountain trails; 
Along the beetling cliffs I've followed Him 

Who never fails; 
In Death's dark vale of fearful shapes and shades, 

Where every Fear 
That made more terrible those gloomy glades 

Drew Him more near. 
But oh, what Joy, forgetting every ill. 

To rest beside 
The tranquil, holy Peace of Waters still 

At eventide. 



68 



MM 24 W 2 



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